For me after Sangla and Chhitkul in Himachal, self drive to Munsiyari from Dharchula via Jauljibi & Madkot, under the mighty Himalaya range and along side river Kali and Gauri, was most adventurous and full of surprises. I took this unexplored route on 1st October 2014 and proudly completed this less traveled road through unseen places laden with stunning landscapes.

My whole idea to trotter down all the way from Delhi to Dharchula (650KM) was to explore this unexplored patch under the mighty Himalaya. From Dharchula there are two roads to reach Munsiyari, first is via Jauljibi-Didihat-Gauchar to Munsiyari which is most obvious mapped route and second is via Jauljibi-Madkot to Munsiyari which is less travelled and almost a barren road. And as an adventure seeker who travels places to enjoy self drive and click landscapes, second route was the obvious choice for me. This is a far more picturesque & beautiful drive compared to the obvious route.

Passing through Rugged Terrain!!

This entire route runs parallel primarily to two rivers of Uttaranchal through sparsely populated region of Uttaranchal where for miles no living creature crosses you. From Dharchula to Jauljibi, Mahakali or just Kali is the river, from Jauljibi to Madkot Gauriganga or just Gauri and after Madkot, road takes a bend at Dhapa Bend uphill to Munsiyari. Meandering along these rivers under the mighty Himalayan makes driving an adventure of life time experience.

As we start from Dharchula along kali River

Meandering along Gauri River

From Dharchula to Jauljibi (23KM), its just like any other mountain road. However, right after Jauljibi every bit of it is enchanting, surprising and other worldly. Gouriganga valley is very less traveled, rarely populated and comprises of one of the most rough & rugged road of India. It is one of the fantastically scenic, quite barren and an unexplored route and I will strongly recommend this to all the off-the-beat travelers.

Expanse of Gauri Valley

The entire stretch of 100KM is rugged & the snowclad himalayan range plays hide and seek all along the way. Mountain streams rush over the road at several places. Most picturesque part was driving through a water fall just before Madkot which I am sure will become most pictured spot on this route in times to come. Mighty Himalayan Range to your right & the Gauriganga river to your left throw surprises at each turn making up for the bad tarmac.

Stunning landscapes compensating for rugged road conditions

Road or No Road i must keep moving!!

And I am sure photographs of this valley and route can only let you understand which I may not be put forth with my modest knowledge of English language. Let the photographs do the justice with the beauty.

Road side Water Pool few miles from Dharchula with a Rainbow created by Water Fall

Water Pool with crystal clear water on road side

A rivulet merging with Gauri river

Water Streams on road near Baram

An old style bridge with a caution: Weak Bridge-Max load capacity 10 Ton only

The road ahead to Munsiyari

Paddy Cultivation in the Gauri Valley: Creating colorful Landscape

Cultivating Paddy In Traditional Way: Age Old Practices

Paddy Farmers of Gauri Valley

Most beautiful spot to stop on the way with beautiful people!

Virgin Landscapes of Gauri Valley

Road to Munsiyari Near Bangapani: Old World Charm!!

Gauri River: Constant companion along the way from Jauljibi to Munsiyari

It was quite an adrenaline rush to drive through the water fall near Madkot

Picturesque: Road under Mighty Himalayan Range through a Water Fall

It may become most pictured place on this route in the future!

My Car: Feel sorry for putting it through so many tests! Proud of you!!

Adventure at best: the River, the Rugged Road, The Water Fall, The Car!!

Thanks for being there on one more trip full of madness!!

View of Gauri valley from uphill after Madkot!!

The road less travelled to Munsiyari

View of Panchachuli as we enter Munsiyari

Picturesque Gauri Valley

Other Worldly Feeling!

I hope you guys would like the pictures and appreciate my efforts in bringing this lesser known, unexplored driving route or travel route to you all.

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Would love to know your story from such adventurous road trip to Himalaya.

If you feel motivated, please share this blog post with your loved ones so that they can break the mundane cycle of everyday life and explore the world.

Apologies for late response.
Del to Kausani to Munsiyari is perfect roue. Kausani and Munsiyari are two best locations. Please take a pit stop at Baijnath on way to Munsiyari from Kausani and while coming back to Delhi from Munsiyari make sure to spend time at Birthi fall and Chaukori.
Dont miss sunrise in Munsiyari.
Enjoy!!

Those beautiful photos certainly does the valley route justice! I’m an adventure seeker as well, and I love that you go off-the-beaten path to explore new places. Looking forward to experiencing the self drive route firsthand – thanks for your direction!

What a gorgeous picturesque landscape to drive through. I would of been stopping every few minutes to take pictures. You probably need a four wheel drive to go through some of those areas. I’ve never been to India, but it’s very high on my list of places to visit. Thanks for sharing your experience.

Every turn offers a scenic beauty and indeed we sepnt alot of time in takking photographs.
FOur wheel drive would be better, but so far i am ecxploring Himalaya in front wheel drive in my Ford Figo. Its doable with eaxtra care.
Come to India, it will be awesome.

Sir, very inspirational blog and hats off to you that you travel on such roads by Figo. I am also starting this journey from Delhi on 04th June’16 (8 days) via Kausani, taking my Brio. So far I Have travelled to Dhanaulti, Manali, Kasol and Chopta on my beloved car last year. Would seek your expert advise on the route and road conditions towards Munsiyari. Am travelling with my wife and kid.

Wow thanks for sharing all these amazing pictures! I love road trips and it’s nice reading about some who are lesser known. I have never been to India and I am not sure if I would dare to drive the route as it looks super remote but it sure looks amazing and super picturesque!

Whoa! Driving through the Himalayas probably felt otherworldly in a lot of ways. Your photos are wonderful and I really enjoyed reading through all the information about your route. I bet the fact the route runs parrallel to the rivers is helpful so you don’t necessarily get lost. Great post and thanks for sharing.

I love self-drive trips as they offer so much freedom to do what you want! It looks quite rugged, your car did amazing to survive it all! Your photos are truly wonderful, and I like the variety of landscapes and people you captured. I especially liked the rivulets and waterfalls. Did you go for a swim in any?

Wow this looks like a really fantastic driving route. I always love taking the road less traveled like you did with this itinerary. Driving a quite route with the Himalaya’s in the back round sound like the ultimate road trip. Thanks for sharing your route and photos!!

This looks like an awesome high adventure road trip (and a little scary). I can’t believe the car you used for that road. It is so low to the ground but its cool you made it work. Those views are well worth the adventure to get out to them. I want to go hiking everywhere here.